"Oh no, Hiruzen!"
Watching the explosion sound out in the distance, a sense of foreboding rose in the hearts of everyone present.
Because that was exactly the direction Hiruzen Sarutobi had left in earlier.
Without the slightest hesitation, they rushed forward and quickly found the place where the explosion had occurred.
The area had been leveled. Under the massive blast, the surrounding trees were destroyed, and every trace of what had been there was wiped away, leaving only debris and clothing scattered on the ground.
Looking closely, there were many remains of flesh and blood left behind. Judging by the residual Chakra traces on them, they belonged to Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"Hiruzen!"
Danzo Shimura was in disbelief: "How could this happen..."
""
The others reacted just like him.
Leaving the Land of Lightning all this way, they had finally managed to escape to this point and were about to return to the Village.
Yet at this critical moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi had met with an accident?
"I don't believe it."
Homura Mitokado was also in disbelief: "With Hiruzen's strength, who could take him down in such a short time?"
As his comrades, they knew Hiruzen Sarutobi's strength all too well.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, currently in his prime, undoubtedly possessed Kage-level strength.
With such strength, even if he were injured, he could have held out for a long time against an ambush by the Kinkaku Brothers. How could he have been taken down by someone in such a short time?
However, whether they believed it or not, the facts were right before their eyes.
They searched the area, trying to find more clues.
However, in the distance, a sound was already approaching.
"Damn it!"
Utatane Koharu was horrified and immediately noticed: "The Kumogakure people have caught up!"
"We can't stay here any longer."
"But Hiruzen..." Danzo Shimura said, his face full of reluctance.
"Even if we stay here, Hiruzen won't come back."
Homura Mitokado's face was solemn: "If he's still alive, he will return to Konoha on his own."
"We have to believe in him."
Danzo Shimura fell silent for a moment before finally nodding.
Things had come to this; no matter what they thought or whether they were willing, they had no way to find Hiruzen Sarutobi immediately.
The only thing they could do now was return to the Village immediately and bring back the news of Kumogakure's betrayal.
If they stayed and got themselves killed as well, it would truly be a joke.
Thinking of this, they didn't hesitate and quickly hurried toward Konoha.
Behind them, a figure stood quietly, watching them leave with a calm expression.
Just half a day later, Danzo Shimura and the others successfully returned to the Village.
They brought back the news of the Second Hokage's death.
At that moment, the entire Village was in shock.
The situation had been looking great before; Kumogakure was prepared to sign a peace treaty with Konoha, and the attitudes of the other nations had softened.
How did it end up like this overnight?
The death of the Second Hokage was a massive loss for Konoha.
It didn't just mean the passing of a top-tier powerhouse; it also meant Konoha had lost an excellent leader.
"Did Lord Tobirama leave any instructions before he passed?"
In the Konoha hall, someone remained silent for a long time before finally asking Danzo Shimura and the others: "For example, regarding the successor for the next Hokage."
As the words fell, the room fell silent again.
The Hokage was the leader of Konoha and the most tempting position within the Village.
Now that Tobirama Senju's death was irreversible, the question of who would become the next Hokage was undoubtedly the most critical.
For a moment, everyone focused their gaze on Danzo Shimura and his group.
However, facing these gazes, the faces of Danzo Shimura and the others were filled with bitterness.
"Teacher... before he died, he designated Hiruzen to be the next Hokage."
After a long while, Utatane Koharu finally spoke.
Hiruzen Sarutobi.
The people present couldn't help but nod; they weren't surprised by this result.
Again, Hiruzen Sarutobi becoming the next Hokage wasn't just a snap decision; it was something that had been prepared for a long time.
Long before that mission, the Second Hokage had already paved the way for Hiruzen Sarutobi to become Hokage.
The next clan heads of the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans were his teammates and subordinates.
The most promising and powerful geniuses of the younger generation in the Village, Danzo Shimura and Homura Mitokado, were his friends and were very convinced by him.
Uchiha Kagami was also one of his friends, and Uchiha Tsugi, the reincarnation of Minamikawa Yuu, was his student, representing the support of the Uchiha Clan.
Adding the Senju represented by Tobirama Senju and the Sarutobi Clan represented by Hiruzen himself, this already accounted for more than half of Konoha's power.
With so many people supporting him, Hiruzen Sarutobi was the perfect candidate for the Third Hokage from the very beginning.
The idea, like Danzo Shimura's, that Hiruzen Sarutobi only became Hokage because of his outstanding performance at the very end and was thus appointed by the Second Hokage on the spot, was a naive one.
This was also why Minamikawa Yuu wanted to deal with Hiruzen Sarutobi first.
Because as long as he was around, no one could compete with him for the position of Hokage.
And once he was gone, whether it was Danzo Shimura or Homura Mitokado, none of them had that undeniable charisma and reputation.
This created a massive vacuum.
As for the subsequent competition for Hokage, that would depend on each person's own ability.
"Hiruzen... he was attacked by Kumogakure rogue ninja on the way back, and his whereabouts are currently unknown."
After a long silence, Danzo Shimura and the others finally spoke up and told the truth.
Wait, what?
Hearing their words, everyone present was stunned.
An internal rebellion in Kumogakure, the Hokage and Raikage dying—that was one thing.
But now you're telling me that even the Hokage's successor is gone?
The Hokage and the Hokage's successor were taken out at the same time in one rebellion?
What kind of nonsense is this?
"How could this happen?"
For a while, everyone found it hard to accept this result.
In the hall, Minamikawa Yuu stood quietly in a corner, looking at Danzo Shimura and the others ahead. He silently lowered his head, showing little emotion.
Unsurprisingly, the day's discussion did not produce any meaningful results.
With the Hokage himself dead and the successor's whereabouts unknown, such discussions were destined to lead nowhere.
Holding onto a glimmer of hope, they decided to wait.
What if Hiruzen Sarutobi came back on his own in a few days?
After all, from the results, they hadn't seen Hiruzen Sarutobi's corpse; he was only missing and hadn't been officially declared dead.
But seven days passed in a row, and there was still no sign of Hiruzen Sarutobi, which was unusual.
Seven days wasn't long in normal times, but for a Ninja of Hiruzen Sarutobi's level, seven days was enough for him to rush back from anywhere.
And yet, even now, there was still no sign of him.
This was enough to pronounce a verdict.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was likely truly dead, killed in the attack by the Kumogakure rogue ninja.
Although this result was somewhat unbelievable, they could only choose to accept it in the face of the facts.
The position of the Third Hokage was now vacant.
Upon realizing this, many people's thoughts began to stir.
Within Konoha, there was never a shortage of ambitious people.
And the position of Hokage was undoubtedly the most valuable thing in Konoha.
Even Hiruzen Sarutobi's former friends now harbored different thoughts.
For example, Danzo Shimura.
He was a student of the Second Hokage and a friend and supporter of Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Originally, if Hiruzen Sarutobi were still around, with Tobirama Senju's dying wish, he would have been a loyal supporter of Hiruzen Sarutobi.
But now Hiruzen Sarutobi was gone.
Since that position was vacant and unoccupied, why couldn't I sit in it?
I am also a disciple of the Second Hokage.
So, after a period of silence, he took the initiative to jump out and compete for the position of Third Hokage.
He wasn't the first person in Konoha to do so.
After him, several others also jumped out, attempting to compete for the Hokage position.
And among the many candidates, the head of the Uchiha Clan was prominently listed.
That's right; facing the perfect situation where the Hokage was dead and the successor was missing, the Uchiha Clan got cocky again.
They displayed their traditional talent and wanted to run for the position of Third Hokage.
This brought immense pressure to others.
For many in the Village, whether it was Hiruzen Sarutobi becoming Hokage or someone else, anything was better than the head of the Uchiha Clan becoming Hokage.
Because they knew them too well and understood all too clearly what this guy would do once he came to power.
In Konoha, there were quite a few people who didn't get along with the Uchiha.
The Senju Clan, as their arch-rivals, went without saying; the Sarutobi Clan and the Ino-Shika-Cho Clans were equally reluctant to see the head of the Uchiha Clan take power.
Even the Hyuga Clan, also a prestigious clan, was unwilling to let the Uchiha Clan surpass them.
One must remember that not too long ago, the Uchiha Clan had even incited a rebellion.
That rebellion was led by Uchiha Setsuna and was eventually suppressed by the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, himself.
With that rebellion in the past, the Uchiha Clan currently had very little support.
But turning around to support Danzo Shimura was also something many people could not accept.
Even Utatane Koharu, Homura Mitokado, and the others felt the same way.
It was true they were Danzo Shimura's friends, but because of that, they knew Danzo Shimura's character even better.
Danzo Shimura took the Second Hokage as his role model, and his actions were known for being cold and solemn.
On the surface, he seemed very similar to the Second Hokage, but he had failed to learn the Second Hokage's other qualities and had already embarked on a different path.
If Danzo were allowed to ascend to the Hokage position, it was hard to say what would happen to Konoha afterward.
Just as later, when the Third Hokage died in battle, Utatane Koharu and Homura Mitokado chose to welcome Tsunade back to the Village rather than consider pushing Danzo Shimura into the Hokage position, their choice was the same now.
With Hiruzen Sarutobi missing and no other suitable candidates, they turned their sights toward others.
Minamikawa Yuu stood out in this situation.